The kids at the Hebrew Academy of Huntington Beach could barely contain their excitement Tuesday as a sword- and shield-wielding Judah Maccabee — the hero in the story of Hanukkah — stepped from the Los Angeles Police Department helicopter that had just landed on their playground.

I was about to write that this column is the Independent's Christmas wish list, but then I realized that Dec. 25 will have passed by the time the paper hits the newsstand. It will also barely miss Hanukkah.
Kwanzaa, maybe? Well, never mind any particular...

Old World Village held the 11th annual International Celebration of Christmas and live Nativity play on Dec. 2.
The money raised from proceeds and donations will benefit World Vision, a Christian humanitarian organization.
Bell choir "Beach City...